Israeli Volleyball League Introduces New Four-Stage Format for Upcoming Season

The Israeli Volleyball Association has announced a new competitive format for the upcoming 2026-2027 season of the Premier League for both men and women. The women's league will kick off on October 9, followed by the men's league starting on October 13. Each league will feature 11 teams competing for the championship title.

The season will be divided into four main stages to ensure a balanced and exciting competition. The first stage is the regular season, where all teams will play two rounds of home and away matches based on the Berger system, reflecting last season's rankings. After these rounds, the league will split into two groups for the second stage: the top six teams will form the upper group, and the bottom five teams the lower group. Points and results from the regular season will carry over.

In the upper group, teams will play a single round of matches to determine playoff seeding, while the lower group will also play a single round. There is a possibility of including the Academy national team in the lower group, pending decisions by the association's management and professional committee.

The third stage is the playoff semifinals, where the top four teams from the upper group will compete in best-of-three series, with higher-ranked teams enjoying home-court advantage. The final stage is the championship series, a best-of-five matchup between the two semifinal winners, with the higher-seeded team hosting the first, third, and fifth games if necessary.

Key early matches include the men's classic between defending champions Mate Asher and Maccabi Yaadim Tel Aviv in the second round, and the women's clash between reigning champions Maccabi Ashdod and runners-up Maccabi Hadera also in the second round. The full schedule is available on the Israeli Volleyball Association's website. The new format aims to deliver a thrilling and competitive volleyball season for fans and teams alike.